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Friday, 31 January 2014

After nearly a week off my skis (I've been over at ISPO Munich so check out all the latest kit reviews here), I finally got out today for a quick hit with Tom Moores. Time was tight due to various work constraints so we knew we'd have to get our fix of adventure in a couple of hours return trip. The ENSA Couloir at the top of Brevent has seen a lot of action recently and I had a sneaky feeling that although there would be no powder left, it could still give us a decent run.

The entrance requires an abseil right now and someone has handily installed an anchor that you ski right up to, so you don't have to traverse across the Couloir to use the normal anchor. There is a fixed rope in place that you could just about hand over hand down in order to avoid abseiling, but it is absolutely wrecked and it would take a braver man than me to trust it. The spot you put skis on is actually about 40m down the abseil but with 30m ropes we abseiled and then down-climbed the final 10m easily enough.

Tom pulling the ropes.

Looking into the Couloir from where you put skis on.

Once we started skiing, life was very good. Perfect chalky snow, albeit a bit bumpy, led us onto the front face of Brevent and some "amusing" combat skiing. The final track out is actually OK and not nearly as rocky as I feared.

Amazing views from the Couloir.

Mooresy loving it.

Further loving it.

Snow on the way tomorrow so it's all about the change again. Stay tuned!